


Mistakes Happened- This Isn't One Of Them

by MrsWilliamHerondale



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alpha Bruce Banner, Alpha Bucky Barnes, Alpha Sam Wilson, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Beta Clint Barton, Beta Natasha Romanov, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Avengers, Family Issues, Fertility Issues, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff because I wanted it, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt Tony Stark, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Not Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie) Compliant, Not Beta Read, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, Omega Steve Rogers, Omega Tony Stark, One Shot, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Protective Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-22
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-24 17:25:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17104928
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsWilliamHerondale/pseuds/MrsWilliamHerondale
Summary: Tony Stark never realized the harm the suppressants would have on his body. Now he has to deal with a wrecked body from it on top of Iron Man and Stark Industries.He may have fallen in love with Bucky Barnes as well...Basically, a Tony Stark struggling in a heat and coddled by the Avengers because I’m weak for it.





	Mistakes Happened- This Isn't One Of Them

**Author's Note:**

> So like three months ago, I had a dream that I was in an Omegaverse with one of my friends, who looked after me the entire time because I went into heat and was in heaps of pain.  
> Yeah, kinda cringe when I put it like that.  
> But I was stuck in my head so much, so I applied to some of my favorite characters from the MCU because I am a sucker for it.  
> I meant to make it maybe 5k words but it kinda got away from me... and here we are now. 
> 
> Quick Note: heats and ruts aren't the mindless sex-crazed thing that they tend to be. It still effects most of them like that but not nearly to the same extent. 
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy.

No one had told Tony the effects of the suppressants after using them for so many years.

To be fair- no one knew the harm that it was going to cause.  It was common knowledge that taking the pills daily was only meant to be a short term thing. It should have been prescribed by doctors in rare situations only.

Somehow Tony had managed to get the full bottles of them for over 15 years. And he  used them everyday with little thought to the harm on his body. So it was his own fault.

He was young and stupid and selfish never to think about it.

It must have been Howard (and then Obadiah Stane) that went out and bribed doctors for the pills. And then bought their silence so no one would ever know they had to buy them. Or, they have would have bought them from an illegal supplier since Tony presented as an Omega.

The day that Tony had started pre-heat for the first time, might have been one of the worst of his life. And that included his parent’s death and Afghanistan.

Tony had been 15 years old and so afraid of what was happening to him. He'd been forced into only Alpha classes since he had started school, never any Omega ones. His knowledge on heats were  severely limited because of it, until it happened to him. He remembered it clearly- when he told Jarvis and his mother. He had been leaking slick from his ass, and stood in front of the adults crying and shaking.

Howard walked in, smelt the pheromones that Tony was projecting  and lost his shit.

Over the next week, Tony dealt with his first heat with cracked ribs and bruised limbs. Plus a broken trust that would never repair itself.  When he could finally leave his room, Howard had screamed further, unwilling to have a son that wasn’t an Alpha or a Beta.

So Tony had to become one and reject was he was biologically.

Not one of the adults mentioned it again. Jarvis tried the hardest to fight it but even he was ordered to follow it by the Stark Alpha. Within the next fortnight, Jarvis handed Tony the bottle of suppressants along with one of Anna’s homemade pudding in an attempt to try and sooth him.  It was the small things that Jarvis did in defiance at times like that- that made Tony smile with joy even years on.

Yet those suppressants had wreaked his body when Tony had finally come off their use. Complete wreaked him.

It wasn’t until Afghanistan that withdrawal had occurred. His broken body had been placed on survival mode, blocking off any chance of a heat until he somewhere safe. For three months, it was a literal lifesaver because Tony had no idea what would have happened without the heat repressing itself.

Then he'd continued having no heats through the return to American soil and the press conference with Obie that caused so much up roar.

When he returned home, and under the watchful eye of JARVIS in his workshop, with the 'bots around him Tony built a nest.  As he relaxed with Pepper and Rhodey sleeping around him, he'd smiled to himself and relaxed.

And then had promptly gone into the most painful heat of his life.

Tony remembered little of it. Not because he lost his head in any sort of wanting or need-  but in the pain that wracked his body, which forced him to pass out within the first hour.

Pepper and Rhodes had barely slept through it once Tony grunted out what has happening. The Omega was leaking some slick but there was nothing alluring about it. The smell of his pheromones was later described as pure fear and pure pain. It wasn’t intended to draw any Alphas to come and breed him, but a primal beg for aid and help.

If that wasn’t hint enough of the help he needed- the screams and grunts that were from pure agony- were indicator enough. That was then combined with two helpless Alphas, a bunch of painful cramping and crying.

Still, Tony wasn't sure if that four day heat or the betrayal of Obadiah Stane had been more painful to deal with. Was it about losing complete control over his body or the emotional havoc caused by one of his oldest friends? Obadiah had tried to kill him twice and take over SI.

Life carried on. And carried on in the most hectic way possible.  Tony became Iron Man and thus the first superhero, and was trying to juggle it along with being the CEO of SI.

No matter what was happening, Tony dealt with it because that’s what Starks did. And no matter what his father had said after Tony presented as Omega- he was a full blooded Stark and had every right to the name. 

It wasn’t the suppressants that screwed with his reproductive system but the Palladium. That had been in the Arc Reactor for months.. The palladium that poisoned his blood since Afghanistan and turned his blood more toxic every day he lived with it in his chest. It was a shit show.

It turned out that it did more than slowly kill him while alo maintaining his life.  It ruined any chance of a child he would bare or sire ever. While he was saddened by it- Tony has never wanted children. It was the choice taken away from him that hurt the most because the smallest glimmer of the family he might have had was erased  and would never be a reality.

The infertility carried other issues with Tony. His heats started coming irregularly and when they did arrive, his body was not preparing with any slick. The once regularly heats that had occurred every three to four months had no pattern.

In that first six months, he went into four heats and then didn't have another for over a year. His body now gave him little warning to these sudden heats. Several times it happened during a fight in the Iron Man suit which was the best instances in a bad case. JARVIS could take control if things became to overwhelming for Tony and it trapped any scent in it.

No one knew except for Pepper and Rhodes about the presentation of Tony being an omega or his heats. Iron Man held the facade while he was fighting (the most stereotypical trait of an Alpha).  And it helped that he was unreliable enough at Stark Industries that a week without him wasn't noted.

He didn't care if people knew- that time had passed but he did wish it to announce it on his terms. Fury walked his house once, and smelt it. Coulson had done the same when coming to the Tower for the first time. It wasn't a big deal anymore.

So when exiting the Iron Man suit after falling from the wormhole in New York, he didn't mask his Omega scent. So when the Avengers ran to his side, they knew too.

 

 

~~~

 

Tony often wished he was a normal Omega. Normal like Steve who knew within hours when his heat would hit him, and would plan  accordingly .  Steve who was the perfect Omega Warrior, and dealt with only some mild cramping and a slight raise in temperature before he was in ‘heat’ .   
  
Ever since Steve had known about Tony’s secondary gender he was considerate and apologetic, always asking in ways he could help .  Regardless of the mindset that he had to adopt in the 1940’s- Rogers wanted Omegas around himself for comfort and for someone to speak to .    
  
Somehow, the blue eyed man looked at Tony for that.  And when the mechanic told the soldier the story of how he wrecked his body due to the suppressants- Steve wasn't disgusted . And instead looked, honest-to-god, like he was about to cry. Which he ended up doing when Tony spoke of the Pallidum and infertility.

Since then, the man-with-a-plan looked out for billionaire with a protective instinct. Steve was the Mother- Omega of the team. And if Steve was the mother, Tony was the elder grandmother who was somehow still alive.

  
His scent was nothing alluring any more-the bitter tang of the toxins that had once been killing him still leaving a mark . On top of that, he usually smelled of metal and blood from the Iron man suit and what he was feeling at the moment of time.  Consciously or not.    
  
While being one of the oldest, it was his heat that  really made him the elder of the Avengers.    
  
Tony's scent in heat was a scream of protect, safety and  _ help help help comfort help. I _ t had been that way since that first heat after Afghanistan. 

It scared Natasha the most once she was in the Tower for one of Tony's heats. She and the rest of the Avengers, ignored it and tried to help the Omega while in heat. It was painful to see him distressed so much. So they tried to stop it.   
  


 

~~~

 

 

No one of the cared how broken Tony was as an Omega. Or because he was an Omega. None of them were the stereotype for their classification either. Tony fit right into the misfits that had banded together, because none of them were restricted in what they did because or what they were.

Bruce Banner appeared shy and kept quiet. It helped to maintain his composure so that the Hulk didn't make an appearance if tensions were high. He isolated himself unless he wanted to talk to someone, which followed classic Omega traits.

But he was an Alpha in the body of the Hulk and in the body of Banner no matter what. When he needed to- he could help control rooms full of people on his terms.

Steve Rogers was the complete opposite to Bruce. The soldier was commanding and comfortable in any leadership position he held. He was never afraid to call out people for being racist or discriminatory regardless of where they were at the time. He was outspoken and carried the aura of power. Yet Steve had been the proudest Omega before the Serum changed his body. And he did so more enthusiastically afterwards as well..

It was Thor (who looked like the Alpha people aspired to be) that was the most confusing to people. As an Asgardian he remained unclassified with only one trait issued to him- Male. While the people of Earth adjusted to this fact slowly, Thor adjusted with ease. Not understanding the issue of secondary genders but always remaining respectful.

Hawkeye was a mixed bag and traits. Clint Barton had the stature of an Omega, his body the slightest bit bigger than Tony’s own. He had the attitude and temperament of an Alpha on the field and remained mostly neutral off it. He made it work somehow and remained the most stable of the Avengers with his Beta outlook on things. Out of everyone, Clint shocked them the most with his second gender.

Natasha Romanoff was only Beta. People never did take in account of her ability to adapt to anything and used it to her advantage while being a Beta. She could switch into a meeker Omega position or an Alpha’s attitude in a second. She used this to her power as people believed the Black Widow to be an Alpha- she used it as a weapon against them.

Tony was like Steve. Everything about him screamed  _ Alpha  _ except his smaller than average size. (That was Howard’s doing no matter how much he wanted to repress that thought).  He allowed himself to be in control and wouldn’t change that unless it was on his terms. Tony never could work out if it was Howard that forced him to learn the Alpha traits or he was always going to be like this.

Bucky and Sam joined the Team after everything in DC. They did break the pattern of the others, being so different from their secondary genders. Between Bucky and Sam arrived it was easy to see the types of Alphas they were.

Sam wasn’t aggressive like a typical one but he did know how to control a room with only the positioning of his body. He could calm people down without a scent, only a word and he could rile them up with little effort. He was one of the nicer Alphas in the world. He was always happy to please who he could, but not demanding the benefits of his status like others.

While Bucky liked silence, he observed. He knew weaknesses and how to expose them. He didn't need to be loud to command attention. The way he stood in a room was the biggest indicator of his assignment. Or the smirk he placed on his face as he was about to revert to the Winter Soldier's training and destruction was to follow. He didn't particularly like aspects of being an Alpha but he would never shy away from it- as the Soldier or as Bucky.

It happened  slowly . Like snail pace slow. It took months and months to realize what had been happening.    
  
It started off after everything had happened in DC and with the Mandarin. Pepper had needed to break away from him and it left Tony hurt and in pain. Pepper had never been his Alpha but Pep had been family to Tony. Her scent of spice and of sugar could  calm his body before he realized what was happening. It shocked him to be completely cut off from her like that. Yet she needed the time, so he allowed her space and as much as she could ever need.

He started spending more time in the workshop. Late nights turned into early mornings in there with more frequency. In the hour of the wolves with no one around the Tower at all, Tony would sneak around. And in one of these nights- the mechanic bumped into the shell of Bucky Barnes.   
  
Somehow- the almost nightly meetings in the dark were therapeutic to them both. Neither could handle any sleep with the screams of dead of their dreams still sounding in their ears. But it made it easier to talk about when you couldn't see the horror on the other’s face.

They made quite a pair as well- The Merchant of Death and the Winter Soldier. Both sharing horror stories in the middle of the night to try and ease the weight on their chests.

Barnes changed  slowly into the man he once was, yet keeping a lot of the man he  was forced to be.  Sometimes, he would slip into the old Brooklyn accent that Steve would take when  sleep deprived, but rarely . Other times, when he spoke about something traumatizing he'd slip up in Russian. He had, for far longer, been the Winter Soldier than Bucky Barnes.   
  
Questions happened in time, asking the other about their past with care.  Tony spoke about Stane and what had happened to form Iron Man. It was all in vague terms from the cave to the fight with Iron Monger, but it was of importance if Tony mentioned it. Bucky, in return told the story of his last mission for the US Army until the part where he fell. Then, he stood up quick and ran from the run with the smell of his fear and pain clear in the air.   
  
There was no judgement.  Tony had done the same while speaking about Yisen and didn’t speak until they met in the dark of the kitchen three days later .

  
  
They settled into a rhythm  quickly , meeting every few nights to discuss thing, trivial or not.  The friendship that they were forming didn’t hadn't registered to Tony until a battle where he'd almost died . An EMP shut off the suit mid-flight and he had  been trapped as it fell to the ground.

It was the feeling of panic and  being paralyzed that had thrown him back to when Stane had taken the arc reactor. The helplessness of knowing your doom but being unable to prevent it the same.   
  
He managed to break only a wrist when he fell, not that he could tell with the roar of the past in his head. It was Thor who managed to rip off the Iron Man suit from him first and then Bucky who calmed him down enough to think. Without a word, Tony crawled over to him and rested his head in the crook of Bucky’s neck. Where the scent of calm and peace pulsing from the Alpha was the strongest.

  
Surprisingly , no one commented on it. Or even showed a surprised reaction at it.   
  
After time, the physical side of their friendship started showing itself- without  subtly . It was a small touch of the wrist there, a clapped hand over a shoulder here. A peck on the cheek when the situation called for it or Tony throwing himself against Bucky. The normal things for the dramatic men to do. 

It  was sweet. 

 

~~~

 

  
“Why are we doing this?” Tony asked  softly one everning, half afraid to hear the answer.  They were  down in the lab, and he felt preheat creeping up his skin leaving him hot, sweaty and cramping that felt like stabbing in his stomach .   
  
Bucky had never been around during one of Tony’s heats, and the Omega was so worried about the Alpha’s reactions. Instead the soldier walked into the lab, sniffed and raised a single eyebrow but said nothing. It was comfortable and relaxed enough that it looked like he’d been in the presences of Steve’s preheats.   
  
“Because I like you.  And you like me” Bucky said  simply , spread across the couch in the corner and throwing a tennis ball to Dummy to try and catch .   
  
“What… what does that mean?”  He’d asked, so aware of the way he was smelling, the sweat that was on his skin, the flush of his face and of the ball he wanted to curl up in .   
  
“We’ll see what happens with it.” the Alpha  just shrugged,, brown hair flicking in front of his face.  “We get to make the rules, doll.”   
  
That blush was already on my face, Tony reasoned with himself. It had nothing to do with that nickname at all.

Neither of them spoke for a while.  Instead they listened to the sounds of Dummy as he chased after the ball,  chirping  happily when Bucky would pat him on the arm when it  was returned . Tony stared at the workbench, trying to fight against the pain building in his stomach. JARVIS was quiet throughout it, watching  protectively as the AI  typically did..   
  
“We are both broken. But  maybe together… we can be something less so” the mechanic spoke.

(It was so thoughtful that Pepper would have been  incredibly  impressed if she had heard it.)

  
There was so much of Winter’s face that Bucky’s shared. While they shared the features- the expressions were the things that separated them. But they crossed over to each other at time- which was happening then. That intense focus (that was almost all Winter)  was directed completely at him. His grey eyes looking as hard as flint but were  really as soft as Bucky’s brown hair was.  The Alpha was oblivious to the room around him and that included Dummy poking at him waiting for the game to continue, as his stared at Tony .   
  
The Omega finally moved away from the workbench, swiping away all the documents and blueprints open on the screens in front of him . He trusted JARVIS to make sure everything would  be saved .  He walked his way over to Bucky on the couch, sitting against his metal arm and resting the top of his forehead on the Alpha’s shoulder .   
  
“Are you in pain?’ Bucky asked, not quite remaining still but limiting his movements.   
  
Tony nodded yet said nothing.    
  
Bucky pulled away  smoothly , looking into Tony’s red face. “Does Steve help with this?”

Another nod.

“Do you want me to get him?”

“Please” Tony groaned out, finally releasing some of the tension he’d been holding within in.

 

 

~~~ 

 

  
It started off sickly sweet but… Winter kind of changed that.

When he made his first appearance in the Tower, they were around Tony in the quiet workshop in the middle of the day. Bucky had zoned out but gone still- a sign that something had resurfaced- when he tilted his head, peering at Tony. He held the same facial expressions as Bucky but in a duller version, almost masked.

"I killed your father." Winter told him.

Steve ran down to the workshop, after JARVIS ordered him to do so, and found them.  With Tony pinned against the bench while spitting curses at Winter, holding him there completely vacant .

Tony ended up flying out to one of his houses out of the country while he processed the Winter Soldier killing his parents . Which was Bucky, but not him at the same time. Pepper actually called in Fury to help deal with it, who arrived in France shitty, but sat down with Tony to talk. It helped, but he still needed space away from everything in New York.

It took him about two months, but he'd ended back at the Tower after three Assembles within a week.  Everyone was lacking energy from battling Doom Bots repetitive, so no one mentioned it . Until Steve tried to apologize for hiding it as well- who was then punched in the face by an Iron man gauntlet.

(He wasn't hurt and Tony's gauntlet had dented because of it. The billionaire got it out of his system, and things went back to normal afterwards)

Bucky wasn't punched, but found half drunk from the communal bar one night in tears by Tony. The Alpha cried in remorse and the Omega cried in grief, to put it  simply . But a lot had  been shared in the drunken night from both of them.

In some weird and twisted way, it became a way to rebuild what they had.  Tony never brought it up again if he could avoid it, and Bucky was happy to  be forgiven for the deed even if he hadn't been in control . And this time, their relationship turned into something much more romantic and intimate.

It took almost two years since Bucky had arrived at the Tower, but together they finally made the call to Pepper to make it official to the public .

 

 

~~~

 

  
Doom was an idiot.

What evil villain decided that trying to take over New York in the middle of the night would ever work? That wasn't even taking in account of the fact that  all of the Avengers were minutes away from the scene. And all grumpy and pissed off as hell for  being woken up due to the screaming Assemble Alarm at three in the morning.   


Thor didn’t even bother changing out of his pajama pants- and shrugged on a jumper and put on his cape before flying off the launch pad . While Tony wasn’t much better, running to the 'shop when he woke up, he at least  was hidden by the suit that covered him. Not that it mattered, because the entire public had seen him in worse states.   
  
Much worse states.    
  
_ Let’s not even think of the summer of ‘93 _ . He shuddered in his suit  just at the memory    
  
Even the Doom Bots looked annoyed while they came at them at waves and waves. Widow and Falcon were on any civil evacuation in the area, then ordered to return to the battle near Cap. Thor and Hulk smashed with as much carnage to the Bots as they pleased to make. As long as it didn't damage the rest of New York.  The Winter Soldier was up on an opposite building with Hawkeye to sniper as many down as possible and was Cap crushing any fleeing Bots with the shield . If any missed that, Iron Man used the repulsers to the rest while on the perimeter.

It had been an awfully drawn out battle with the Bots coming in waves of intensity. As it was lighten up and seem to be ending, the next wave would hit with a renewed strength.  Even the God of Thunder was sick of electrocuting the ones that reached him by the time the sun had risen, and the battle seemed like it was over for good .   
  
Tony contacted SHIELD at about seven in the morning to signal that the Avengers were coming in for debriefing .  Steve did _ the look of disappointment _ when he also mentioned the threat of a pissed off Iron Man bugging the system unless he  was greeted with coffee . Bucky, sweet bratty Bucky, laughed and then threw a sweaty arm over Tony's shoulders.    
  
Hill brought the Quinjet to the Avenger’s tower  thankfully , because most of the team was dead on their feet.  The Hulk had transformed back into Bruce before he stumbled into Steve and fell unconscious almost immediately .

  
By scent of   _ grumpytiredpissedoff  _ carrying  from the meeting room and the looks of them, Fury walked into the meeting room wary .  And didn’t give a single sarcastic remark about the attire of his team in their sleepwear. He even  slyly handed Tony a double shot espresso before asking Steve and Bucky the events of the battle.    
  
It wrapped up quickly- or at least to Tony as Bucky nudged his arm and jolted him awake, Fury moved aside from the head of the table and Hill moved to replace him .    
  
“Romanoff, Wilson and Barnes, you're needed in two hours. We are flying out to Washington before noon. The Director’s picked out a team of seven newer agents to come with you. I’m handling this mission. “ She smirked as she looked up from her Starkpad and gave Natasha a look, “please don’t scare them too much. They are the best out of the training group in stealth. I’ve sent the briefing to you all. Be ready.”   
  
Tony’s stomach sank lower to his ground. He didn't want to be clingy but… he  _ really _ wanted Bucky to stay. He  just didn't feel right about it. The Omega in him didn't feel comfortable with it.  But he had always hated that irrational instinct the Omega section of his brain held so ignored it all instead .    
  
Sam groaned as his forehead hit the table, scratched arms coming up to bracket his head. “Why us?”   
  
The Alpha female raised an eyebrow. “Between the Avengers, you three are the best at stealth. And the team can manage without you for a couple of days. While you all have your talents, they can  be covered until you return.”   
  
Steve spoke up, brushing a hair through his sweat soaked hair. “How important is it? The Avengers are on call for Doom for at least the next three days.”    
  
The peek Hill makes towards Bucky is everything.

“Hydra” the Alpha breathes out, his fist clenching  visibly on the table in front of him. The flesh one that is resting over the back of Tony’s chair is still though, giving no chance of him  being hurt by it.    
  
Fury finally injected, remaining calm and projecting no pheromones at all. “There’s sightings in Washington, snooping around where shit hit the fan two years ago. We need confirmed sightings before out agents can  be sent out to deal with it with you. Barnes, you’ll be sniping but you should also be able to give us the ranks of the agents the Soldier is familiar with.”

Hill spoke up. “Anyway, you have an hour til you’re needed back here and in the weaponry.” With that, both Fury and Hill nodded their dismissal and left the room.  Slowly , the others followed them in various stages of consciousness.    
  
There aren't any sappy goodbyes between them. This happens far too often and their lives are far too dangerous to  be caught up in unnecessary fear.  Sam and Natasha  barely mutter a word of goodbye before they both head to the closest showers available .   
  
Bucky (being the slight exception) punches Steve  lightly on the shoulder as a goodbye. Then he slinks back over to Tony, who is still lazing on the chair in the meeting room, and scents the man on the neck.   
  
Omega’s scent glands are in two spot:  wrists of their hands and the junction of their neck, where one day a biting mark will go to taint the smell of them forever . It was intimate and comforting at the same time- a place to seek it from your partner. It was something that Bucky couldn't help himself from doing. Tony smelled like grease and sweat and metal a lot of the time, but  mostly he smelled of curiosity and coconut.    
  
(When the engineer found out about this, he laughed himself hoarse.  And when he was able to pause enough, he explained about the newer arc reactor and the odd side effect it had colour and in taste .)   
  
“I’ll miss you” The soldier muttered.  His metal hand ran through the matted hair of Tony, kissing the hollow of his throat that was so exposed when they did this .   
  
Tony whispered back. “I’ll miss you as well, Buckaroo”   
  
A peck on the lips was all they could have before Steve (that son of a bitch) slammed his hand on the door. The hint obvious enough while still trying to be polite that only Cap could achieve.    
  
Bucky pulled away and raised an eyebrow, grinning as he left the room. “See ya, Tiny-Tony”

 

~~~   


 

Natasha Romanoff took care of her weapons, and made them last like Tony could not believe. But this battle had been too much for the Bites which had actually split in half from impact on one of the Bots. She had taken the spares for this new mission but... she didn't know that Tony had taken the spare spares to try and upgrade them as a surprise.

Usually, it wouldn't have been such a big deal but in an attempting to upgrade and strengthen the weapons, Tony failed . He since hadn't fixed them yet, and had to before Nat found out when she returned.   
  
So after the initial rest from the mission, the mechanic had woken up, gone straight to the coffee machine, and down to the workshop to try and fix the weapon .  With Black Sabbath playing  quietly so Steve wouldn't wake from it through floors and the steaming mug of coffee, Tony got to work

  
“Hey JARVIS? Can you bring up the last three specs up on the screen for me?” Tony said as he wheeled his office chair over to the couch to grab the failed prototype and the broken pair of Bites   
  
  


~~~   


 

Tony’s head hurt. His eyes stung from staring at the screens for far too long without enough sleep. He felt the headache blooming in his head from the blasting of music without pause for far too long.

It might have been from the battle the day before, where Iron Man had taken a beating while fighting to help Clint get the shot .  Regardless of the damage on the Iron Man suit, the battle had  been finished within minutes once Hawkeye hit the control panel that controlled all the Doom Bots and killed them all .     
  
_ That's right. Three of our players leave and Doom shows his face. Of course, _ Tony though  bitterly . 

  
It was night when Tony finally made it up to the common floor from his workshop. He made a bee-line straight to the kitchen to find some blueberries to eat.  Thor had Game of Thrones on the TV, watching it with such a focus he didn't even break his attention  when Tony walked behind him .    
  
Clint was up on the bookcase and kicking his feet against the top shelf. He held a glass bowl of popcorn and was also watching the TV.  Steve and Bruce were sitting at the table in the dining room with takeout spread all over it, pouring over a Starkpad .   
  
A kernal of uncooked popcorn hit his head. “Can you grab me a beer?”   
  
“Only if I can throw it at you.” The mechanic sniped back, already lifting the can from the fridge.   
  
“Tony.” Steve said, not even looking up.   
  
He walked over to the bookcase and threw it up instead.  Barton kicked his feet out to catch the can with, managing to hold onto the popcorn and his seat.   
  
“J, can you lower the temp by a couple degrees please?” Tony asked, while grabbing some of the duck from where Steve had it placed near his elbow.    
  
The super soldier raised an eyebrow at him at the request, looking at the jumpers that both he and Bruce wore.    
  
“What?” he snapped.  Steve only shook his head and turned his focus back at the device on the table.   
  
“Anthony! You must come and watch what your namesakes house is doing!” Thor shouted across the room, eyes still glued to the show.   
  
“Lower it  slightly big guy.” Tony muttered but still made his way over to watch how the Starks were doing in the War of the Five Kings.    
  
It was entertainment at least, to see another Stark mess up enough to make Tony look innocent. Although his favorite wasn’t even a Stark. It happened to be the smart ass from House Lannister  that had the same level or snark he had himself. It wasn't a stretch for the Omega to picture himself as Tyrion.   
  
He wasn’t sure how long he sat there next to Thor, or how many episodes they watched together.  At some stage, Barton had moved from the bookcase to the arm of one of loveseats, and Bruce had gone down to his floor for the night .  Steve also joined them and handed Tony another cartoon of Chinese food as he joined them in their unprompted binge watching of GOT .    
  
Halfway through one on the episodes in the third season, JARVIS informed Thor that Jane rang, and the God  practically run out of the room to take the call . It was super cute to see him so smitten. Thor had missed out on time with his girlfriend while being at the Tower this week but hadn't minded.    


“Hey JARVIS. Turn it down the heating down another degree or two.” Tony asked, not moving from the curled up position on the couch.

Steve had been fiddling with a pencil and a notebook until then gone still.    
  
“Cap what’s up?” Clint asked, keen eyes picking up on it right away.   
  
The Super-Solider waved him off, instead moving from his position to Thor’s vacant one.  Almost at once, Steve started threading his fingers through the hair of the brown-haired man laying down next to him   
  
“Tony?” he spoke  tenderly , fingers not stopping.   
  
“Mmhh?”   
  
The Super Soldier took a deep breath and exhaled. “How long have you been going into preheat?”   
  
Tony felt his body freeze. “No.”   
  
“Think about it, please.  Because you have already asked twice for the heating to lowered, and you ate as much Clint even though you don't like big meals .” Steve rationalized.    
  
The Beta across from them was still relaxing. “Betcha got a headache too Stark.”

“Sir, if I may interject…” JARVIS paused, waiting for any objections.  "Your body temperature has risen over the past several hours as per your typical preheat symptoms”   
  
It was a panic of  _ ohshitthisishappeningnow, ohmygod _ and  _ shitshitshit. _ He knew right away that his scent would expose the panic he felt- but he couldn’t  really care. His heat had to hit now? His stomach tightened with a slight fear but something else-   
  
“Tony… It’s alright. We’ve been through this and we’ll do it again.” Steve murmured  softly , hands still playing with his hair.    
  
“But…” the Omega knew his face would flush red as he spoke, as would Steve’s. “Bucky.”    
  
“I can call Nat?”  Clint suggested, trying to remain helpful while not actually moving from the position he was in .    
  
The smaller man shook his head  incredibly fast. “Don’t you dare, Barton…. I’ll be fine.”

Steve almost whined himself, noting the obvious way Tony was trying to deny himself. "It's okay to want him-"

"No. I said I'll be fine, Cap. I've done it before."   


 

  
~~~

 

Some more of the preheat symptoms that Tony usually got were how clingy he got, and mood swings he got.

So when Thor had been in the workshop the next morning and had knocked something off the bench, Tony was already annoyed . Yet, it had fallen onto Butterfingers metal frame and had dented it. It was a tiny little mark but Tony had screamed at Thor because of it.

  
(in the head of the mechanic, he knew it was an easy fix that would take minutes to fix. .  But the Omega in him screamed out in anguish when he’d seen the closest things he would ever had to children  being harmed .)   
  
With the preheat rising in his body, Tony loss his sanity for a moment with hysteric cry and a very close hammer almost  being thrown . The God’s eyes had widen as he realized a line had  been crossed and and left the workshop  quickly .

Tony hadn’t even realized when Steve entered the room, hours later while he  was curled up in the ‘bots charging station with them all peering down at him .    
  
The distressed Omega had a wrench in one hand and curled up on himself.  And by the looks of it, had covered the frames of Dummy, U, and Butterfingers in some bubble wrap to protect them from any further damage .    
  
Once Steve coaxed Tony to come upstairs, they had bumped into the others at the Tower playing Mario Kart.  Tony had taken one look at Thor who was sitting on the ground with his legs crossed, and  promptly went over and hugged him while apologizing . Thor laughed the encounter off but had inquired about the ‘bot he’d injured. And then apologized himself.

Everyone had kind of gotten use to some of the bizarre things that happened to them due to their second gender. ( Notably when Bruce almost hit Clint over a plate of food). But Tony hadn't.

Instead he'd spent the rest of the night quiet and withdrawn, stuck in a headspace of self-loathing until Bruce has  slowly pulled him out of it with questions about a project he was conducting .

~~~

 

People in the Tower could not fucking shut up.  Tony had been in the haze of consciousness, where he'd been in the grasp of sleep but his mind was racing and keeping him up . Right when he seemed to be dozing off for one final time, some idiot starting yelling.   
  
Once Tony sat up in bed  sluggishly , JARVIS raised the blinds an inch let some sunlight in but not enough to blind the mechanic who was squinting at the door .   
  
“Stark, can your protective AI back off and let me in? I didn’t skip a debriefing with Fury for nothing you know. As soon as he realizes-” the voice broke off into muttering fast enough that his sluggish brain couldn’t keep up.   
  
“J? Let ‘em in” Tony said, flopping back onto his back and gripping the blankets around him to pull in closer.    
  
“Of course sir.” The AI spoke with  just enough sass seem smug    
  
A body sat down next to him, closest to the window. “Doll. This nest is a disaster.”   
  
“Shut up, Buck.” He actually felt a whine building up in his throat.    
  
The short bark of dry laughter Bucky  was known for sounded way too close to his ear. “Realized that I’m back yet then?   
  
The Omega turned his body away and curled up in the blankets further. The scent of sleep and home were  incredibly strong in his bedroom and bed. Yet somehow not masking the prevalent scent of Bucky’s sweat or the residue of gunpower and leather. Tony was that confident that if he opened his eyes, he would find the Alpha in his gear on the bed.   
  
_ Well… I wasn’t wrong _ he snarked to himself at a quick glance at the Soldier.

Bucky  was covered from his neck down in his fighting gear- the same material as Steve’s stealth suit  was made from. (Although it  was colored in the darkest black Tony could find unlike Cap's) . The classic black sniper paint was still noticeable around his stark grey eyes and--   
  
“If that is blood on your face, you can leave.” Tony turned back around and closed his eyes once more.    
  
“Never.” Bucky's right eye ticked  slightly .

_ Liar  _   
  
“Get into the shower punk. Let me sleep.”

A faint brush of lips on the forehead, a flesh hand running through the sweaty and greasy mess of hair.  "How long you been in heat for?"

Tony pursed his lips. "Two days. Three for preheat."

"You could have called me." the Alpha complained.

"Buck- let me sleep."

"I'm going. I'm going." It was another gentle kiss and he gone.

~~~   
Bucky hadn’t pushed himself into Tony’s personal space by the time that he’d woken up enough.  So  the billionaire walked  sluggishly to the shower and rinsed off the sweat and the strongest pheromones off his body under the warm water . 

Bucky was sitting with damp hair that had dried enough to return to its natural hair colour, in tracksuit pants and one of his loose shirts. He was sprawled an the couch- in Thor’s designated spot- watching Dog Cops.  
  
_God damn it Clint._ Tony groans to himself, knowing that the archer was the only one that would have recommended this to Bucky. Probably as a ‘catch up to the 21st century’ idea.  
  
Tony walked straight the the kitchen and by the time he’d made his way over JARVIS had already turned on the coffee maker.   
  
“Thanks J.” He smiled as he grabbed himself a mug. “How was the mission, Bucky-bear?”   
  
“Sam almost got stabbed but SHIELD caught only a few minor Hydra Heads but it wasn’t anyone that….” Bucky cleared his throat as Tony walked around the couch and sat down next to him. “How are you?”  
  
The Omega chuckled as he took a sip of the coffee. “Same as the other times. How badly did Fury chew you out for missing debriefing?”  
  
“Nat covered for me but I already half-assed a written report for Hill.” He threw his arm over the shoulders of Tony and used it to pull the older man closer, pressing against his side. “Cramping?”  
  
The Omega shrugged as much as he could with the extra weight. “I’m used to it.”  
  
“That’s not what I asked.”  
  
Tony actually wanted to whine. “Less that what is typical for me alright.”  
  
“Good.” The Alpha huffed.  
  
It was only about ten minutes of silence between them, watching the awful show before Bucky started twitching. Not incredibly noticeably, but it was the gears on his left arm started humming as he flexed and then clenched again.  
  
“What?” Tony asked, pulling away to look directly at him.  
  
He found himself on the lap of Bucky as the Alpha wrapped his arms around him tightly and pulled him up on his thighs . Unconsciously, Tony lifted his neck slightly which sparked Bucky groan and press his face into the crook of the Omega’s neck.  
  
“You smell like.. really good sweetheart.” the muffled voice reasoned, all thoughts of Dog Cops now forgotten.  
  
Just the sound of Bucky like that- it curled deep in his stomach and dulled the pain of cramping and wound up the Omega section of his brain.   
  
_Calmhapppycalmhappymorehappy_ his body screamed at him loud enough that he knew his pheromones were projecting . While it mixed with his natural scent in a peculiar way, it wasn't unpleasant.  
  
As Bucky’s chest rose in a sniff, Tony pushed himself close as he could to surround himself with the scent of joyful Alpha  


 

~~~

 

It was mid afternoon before Steve walked into the lounge and saw both Bucky and Tony sprawled over one another, and then  promptly walked away .    
  
Minutes later he returned with the gold and red patterned weighted blanket that Tony knew that was from his workshop . Steve didn't even speak to them but threw over the blanket to the pair.  Natasha entered minutes afterwards.   
  
“Hey Natalie.”    
  
“Stark.” She smiled at him, ruffling the top of his hair as she walked behind the couch. And for good measure, she knocked Bucky in the back of the head after he growled at her.    
  
“Did you use the thighs of death to kill anyone this mission?” He asked, peering over Bucky.    
  
A small smirk and a raised eyebrow was the answer.    
  
He felt Bucky reply, “Like three,  I think .”    
  
“Five actually Barnes. Getting forgetful in your old age?” replied the red haired.   
  
Steve cleared his throat, defusing any chance of a cat fight between the two Russian fighters. “Do you want a movie?”    
  
“You going to make it a team building one Stevie?” Barnes sassed back.    
  
“He already asked everyone else.  Bruce is busy, Thor's with Jane, Sam's sleeping still and Clint is at SHIELD headquarters with Fury and some new recruits .” Natasha spoke up,  being unaffected by the glare from Cap.   
  
“JARVIS, could you please play one of the movie from my list?” Steve asked.    
  
“Of course, Mister Rogers.” The AI put on the beginning of the Back to the Future which  effectively shut up any more chatter from them further

 

~~~

 

Bruce walked in at some stage through the second movie and started cooking something up in the kitchen . From the smell of all the spices used, it was something that he’d learn to do while in India on the run before he was an Avenger. Natasha slinked off her seat and then over it, doing it  flawlessly to help him out cooking.   
  
They returned with small bowls of curry for everyone, that smelled incredible.  When Bucky lowered his eyelids and went to bare his teeth at Bruce, the scientist  just laughed and continued handing Tony the bowl .    
  
“You know I am the Hulk right?”    
  
“And I am the Winter Soldier.” Bucky snapped back almost childlike.    
  
“Good luck beating Green Bean, sugar. I’ve seen him take on a God in this very room.” Tony sassed back, drawing laughs from Bruce and Steve.   
  
“How’s your heat been, Tony?”    
  
The mechanic pursed his lips- eyes lighting up with the opportunity. “ Just like you’d expect- a needy Omega dripping with-”   
  
“Sweat and begging for a chance to cuddle?” Natasha finished. “Normal then”   
  
“I hate you all.” Tony whimpered without any heat.

 

  
~~~   
  


 

It was shitty night for both of them.   
  
Tony first woke both of them up only  just past midnight with a flash back from New York. Some hours later, he'd up from screams and  rolled out of bed to watch Bucky scream through his teeth.  The solider stayed canicotic still while having nightmares, which was frightening but never placed he or Tony in harm .   
  
JARVIS had woken Bucky up within minutes but it was harder to watch then Tony thought. Bucky had fallen back asleep within the hour of the nightmare, wrapped around Tony.  It was in the haze between sleep and consciousness that the first stabbing pains began from Tony’s lower back then to the front of his stomach .    
  
Bucky had awoken again when the sun hit him in the face, with a pale and sweating Omega still in his arms, awake but only  barely .    
  
Neither of them verbalized of how terrible the night was. It was a rare occasion that both of them  were caught up with the past through the night. Over the time they’d spent together, they grew to deal with it. Tony’s heat hadn’t  been mixed in with it yet, which made it much worse for the Omega then either thought.

At breakfast, with a grumpy soldier and a withdrawn billionaire, the rest of the team were watching everything  carefully . Trying to avoid any triggers.   
  
When Tony left the dining space to one of the loveseats in the lounge, no one said anything. Within ten minutes, Clint wandered over to start playing Mario Kart on the TV screen. The team wandered off to do their own things- Steve and Nat to get a sparring session in at the gym. Sam for a run around Central Park without having his ass kicked. Bruce and Thor joined in the living room to compete against Clint.    
  
( Surprisingly , Bruce had some serious skill when it came to the game, managing to beat Clint almost every time .)   
  
The Omega knew that his boyfriend would been within hearing distance of him. Most likely in the kitchen with a mug of black coffee, which  was confirmed as he peeked over the loveseat.    
  
Popping down to the workshop  quickly , Tony grabbed his Starkpad and met with his Alpha in the kitchen.    
  
“Wanna come sit down with me?” he asked, trying not sound desperate.    
  
Bucky saw right through it. “Yeah, sweetheart.”    
  
The Arc Reactor seemed to be working a little more in that moment as Tony almost skipped a breath at the nickname.  The smirk on Bucky’s face told Tony he’d heard it as well.    
  
“Shut up and cuddle me.”   
  
Pepper had  been informed of his heat by Tony as soon as he’d  been told it was happening. And his CEO did everything in her power to try and make it as comfortable for him as possible.  Instead of meetings this week, he had a fair amount of plans to work through with the use of the Arc Reactors as a source of power .  This included blueprints, timetables of production and some of the legal requirements needed from any councils needed for SI to  implement them .   
  
It was dry work but it was helping Pepper as much as he was able to while in heat. And knowing how much more she  was forced to take on to her plate through this week made it less boring and dull. Plus, it go more of the paperwork pile off Tony’s to do list that was almost never ending.    
  
Bucky shifted his arm from where it rested over Tony’s leg, and lent in closer to pull the Omega towards him.    
  
“What?” he asked.    
  
“You’re yawning  constantly . You should go try and get a couple hours of sleep.” Bucky replied  softly , his fingers on his left arm starting to drag up Tony’s back.   
  
“Ha.” the billionaire scoffed. “Sleep is for the weak.”   
  
“Stark, I could blow a breath on you at the moment and you’d fall.” Clint piped up from his position on the fluffy carpet, focused on the split TV screen for the game.   
  
“Tony-” Bruce tried.   
  
Thor got involved as well. “Man of Iron-”    
  
Groaning  internally with the not subtle attempt to gang up on him all at once, Tony raised one of his hands.   
  
“Alright. Alright. I’ll put the device down and try to relax. We’ll see if that turns into sleep.”   
  
Bucky peered down at him after he’d moved the Starkpad away Tony. His grey eyes held a questioning light to them, but it was almost like they were being blocked.    
  
“What?”   
  
Bucky bit his bottom lip  slightly , and shifted his arms up higher onto Tony’s shoulders. “Can I try something?”   
  
The smaller man could tell that a frown was on his face. “I guess?”   
  
Ever so  carefully , Bucky lifted his flesh hand and positioned it against the back of Tony’s neck. Right where some of his bonding glands were. The room faded to the background right away and all he could think about was how it felt.  He went tense for a moment- and Bucky was pulling away from him.    
  
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t-” the Alpha began, his pheromones already beginning to change into something bitter .    
  
Quickly , the Omega grabbed the hand  awkwardly behind him and tried to lower it back down. Bucky got the hint and replaced it, only resting it on his neck.    
  
“ Just be super careful.” Tony instructed, allowing himself to be vulnerable in a way he had never done before.

As soon as the tiniest bit of pressure  was added against his glands , Tony melted into goo on Bucky’s lap.   
  
“Alright?” the Super Soldier asked  gently .   
  
He could only nod back.   
  
Time was hazy while he was in that state of utter relaxation. He  vaguely knew that the video games had  been shut off at some stage and replaced with Game of Thrones. And Clint had left and returned with a bowl of popcorn and poptarts for Thor. Bucky pressed against Tony  tightly , which was comforting in it own way.   
  
It was a world of warmth and utter peace that was super rare in his life. His super chaotic life.  Bucky had done one of the most intimate things that an Omega was capable of, regardless of the issues of Tony's secondary gender .  It was a slight hint of what could have been and what should have been. If Tony hadn’t had the suppressant pills for so long- this might have been a normal heat without pain and only desire.    
  
If things had been normal  Bucky would be enjoying this time  just as much as Tony would, have rather than the ‘mothering’ that he did . Or Steve did. Or the entire team did.  It would have been a chance to-   
  
“Oh my god! What the fuck?" Clint shouted at the TV, breaking Tony away from both thoughts and the haze. What the hell-   
  
Bucky moved his hand from his neck as soon as Tony began to pull away, resting it on his back instead. As he shifted  slightly , the Omega froze.

His pants were wet. He knew what it was. It shouldn’t be happening. It stopped during heats the poisoning with the Arc Reactor-    
  
“Oh my god.” He whispered,  apparently all he was capable of.    
  
_ How the hell didn't I realized. Or Bucky? _   
  
His breathing quickened and he tried to pull back the panic he could feel rising.  Because here he was, in the lounge of the common area with slick pooling in his pants and all over the loveseat. And  possibly Bucky. In a room full some of the closest people in his life.

_ Stark men are Alphas and  _ _ are made _ _ of Iron.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ They don’t lose control of themselves and they definitely do not become a whorish Omega with slick dripping down their ass _ _. _   
  
How could Howard still impact him so much still?   
  
“Sweetheart, breathe.” Bucky tried to sooth him.   
  
Instead he was trying to escape from the arms that held him in way too close. It didn't matter how much Tony pulled at either metal or flesh because he wasn't moving.    
  
It must have been the tiniest bit of submission that came with the neck glands  being touched voluntary that triggered the slick . Had to be.    
  
“Let me go now.” He almost screamed at the Alpha.

He could feel the stares of the others on him. Small lazer sharp eyes watching everything. Bruce, Clint, Thor and Bucky all watching.

"Tony-" Bruce spoke up

And when the freedom came, Tony ran for the elevator without saying anything else. And did it quick enough that Bucky didn't follow. Or anyone else.

The distressed Omega could hear  dully what JARVIS was saying calm him but it wasn't processing in his brain . Something about the breathing techniques he'd  been taught . It was a roar that he couldn't hear.    
  
The doors opened onto his floor, and Tony wanted to cry. Instead he got out of the elevator as quick as he could manage.

He still couldn’t believe it. But the fact was he could feel the slick drip onto his boxers and stick his clothing to his ass and thighs. He walked over to the darken widows across the room and tried to gaze at himself in the reflection of it.

A small ding, and then the doors  were opened .

“Hey, what the hell was that?” Bucky growled as soon as he exited the elevator himself. “We were trying to help you-"

It was shitty timing.

Less than the leaking slick in front of everyone, but the positioning of Tony allowed Bucky to see his darkening grey pants . It was so obvious and clear to anyone who was to walk in.   
  
“Oh.” was all the Alpha had to say.

  
The Omega pushed past him and went straight towards the bedroom, opening up drawers  haphazardly to find something to wear . Anything that he could destroy with his own  bodily functions and not care about.   
  
“Let me help-” Bucky tried   
  
“No.”   
  
Both men started towards the bathroom, Bucky trying to worm his way into the doorway as Tony tried to shut it.    
  
“Tony.”   
  
“Back off, Barnes.” Tony snapped at him, getting more desperate to be alone.   
  
Bucky wasn’t faulted. “Ohh, using last names are we? Alright then Stark. Let me help you-”   
  
“I got it.”   
  
“It’s normal.”   
  
Tony snapped a little. Well… more than a little. “BUCKY! I am leaking slick from my ass and  just did so in front of everyone. Back the hell off so I clean myself and try to gain my pride back.”    
  
It worked. The Alpha stumbled back a step or two, not that Tony saw as he slammed the door shut and ordered JARVIS to lock it.  He didn’t want to think about it. Or Bucky.   
  
Instead he walked  fully clothed into the shower and tried to forget the feelings of shame he felt. And then to clean himself up before throwing on a slick-pad to try and prevent it again.

 

~~~   


 

“I’m sorry.” He spoke up  awkwardly , looking at Bucky perched on the end of the bed after he exited the master en-suit.   
  
The Alpha still had a slight scent of disappointment on him. And sadness.  Logically , he knew that he’d hadn’t meant to upset Bucky but it still put him at edge to be the reasoning behind the emotion.   
  
“Please don’t be Tony. I should have backed off-”   
  
“-I didn’t need to snap while you were trying to be helpful-”   
  
“-you  just wanted space. And I wasn’t listening.” Bucky said, still maintaining a calm tone of voice.   
  
Tony walked over to the Alpha before  hesitantly sitting flush against him.  When Bucky didn’t speak or move, the Omega stared at the carpet, watching it move against his feet and  slowly sinking his toes into the fluffy material .    
  
“I am sorry for screaming at you.”   
  
The man beside him took a deep breath and flexed his mechanical arm twice before speaking up again.    
  
“You know it happens to every Omegas right? Why… why did you freak out so much?” He ask,  purposely turning his body to face Tony completely.   
  
Tony brought his hand up to the Arc Reactor, rubbing it  gently as he talked- opening himself up in a way that wasn't often seen . He would rather be in the workshop. Be surrounded by the Bots then try and have this conversation but… he owed it to Bucky for being such an ass.

"I don't know. I was slicking and then I  just panicked. And Howard was in my head. I had to- I needed- It was- Tony started but started getting caught up with his speech. "Its a loss of control. And so embarrassing to have it happen it front of  all of you guys and I  just -"

"Take a breath for me, doll." Bucky instructed, his metal hand covering Tony's own on his chest. "It's okay. Shit like this happens to the best of us."

“It was always a loss of control for me.” As soon as his voice dropped, and Tony began to pull away from Bucky and curl up on himself- JARVIS spoke up.   
  
“Sir- your heart rate  is elevated .  Perhaps you should-” the British voice said with the kindest tone he could create.   
  
“J, honey. I'm alright.” Tony responded.

Grey eyes met the brown. "Howard?" Bucky asked.

"He could never have a son that wasn't better than a Beta. Someone needed to take over the company and it had to be me. I had to change."

"Was he around for your first heat?"

"Who do you think got me the suppressant pills?" 

The Alpha took three breaths  quickly , trying to calm himself. "Tony. Doll. You don’t need to hide it from me, from us.We aren't him. We can help. I can help. ”

While he didnt verbalize an answer, Tony looked straight into the grey eyes that held his heart and nodded  sharply .   
  
They found each others arms and necks, scenting the other in the silence that followed.    
  
“Buck, you’re still scenting like your angry.” Tony murmured into the side of the Alpha’s neck, mindful of how sensitive it could get.   
  
He chucked almost  humorlessly , “I  really want to go hit one of Stevie’s bags in the gym, sweetheart.”

 

~~~

 

  
“Steveeee.” Tony groaned out as he walked onto the floor that both Steve and Bucky shared together.    
  
Steve had created and decorated the floor into something completely his and something that he was comfortable with . It seemed more cozy and homely then the common floor or any of the other Avengers.  Steve decorated with the greys, browns and dusky oranges that worked together regardless of how much Tony puzzled over it .    
  
When Bucky returned with Steve, the Alpha moved into the floor with no hesitation or care for the way it  was looked \- only asking for a room and a bathroom . Until Sam’s own floor had  been decorated , he too had stayed on Steve’s floor and made it look like a college dorm room.   
  
“What?” Sam called out.

Tony walked into the dining room where Sam had his feet on the table while watching the news from the television in the open lounge room space .  Steve was in the kitchen actually washing and drying a small pile of white dishes by hand, visible across the island .   
  
“Um- JARVIS told me that you weren’t busy so I could come down to see you?” he asked unsure and looking between the two.    
  
Sam lifted an eyebrow as he turned  quickly . “Cap’s going to be making cocoa and I wanted some. Feel free to stay if you want, Tony.”  The pilot’s attention turned back around  quickly to the tv screen where some famous scandal occurring was being announced .    
_  
_ _ Thank God my name isn't attached to that. _ _  
_   
“Steve. Um…” Tony walked closer to the kitchen.  “Bucky is in the gym with a couple of your punching bags…” Steve’s blue eyes lifted  slowly , full of questions and confusion . “I don’t think it’s a great idea that he stays alone.” the older Omega finished  lamely .   
  
“I can go and punch him a few times if that helps.” Sam interjected, still focused on the program and back to the Omega.   
  
“What’s it about?” Steve hummed, still washing his dishes.   
  
Tony ground his teeth against each other. “Howard. And me. As Omega.”   
  
“Goddamn it.” Steve groaned out as he put a dried bowl down on the island.    
  
“I-” Tony tried once again.   
  
“I’ll meet him down there in a couple of minutes.” Steve began walking out of the kitchen. “Help yourself to a cocoa Tony, it looks like you need it. Sam, you too. It’s in the fridge,  just heat it up.”    
  
“Thank you Steve.” Tony said, trying to express how thankful he was that Bucky wasn’t  just going to--   
  
Steve cut him off, “I get it okay?”. The original Super Soldier darts to his room and back out the to the elevator with only a handful of clothes.   
  
Well- Steve did understand. Clint and Bruce being a close second. Because most of the Avengers had missing father figures or abusive ones.  Whereas Clint could understand due to the backlash of not fulfilling an Alpha presentation, Steve could comfort him for the stigma that he’d been a victim off for his own status .  Tony had dealt his entire life with no meeting the expectations of Howard, no matter what he did to try and please him . He expected that Bruce knew more about that side of things that anyone should-   
  
“Tony? Are you alright?” Sam’s deeper voice pulled him from his thoughts. Tony  just hoped that his scent hadn’t picked up any smell of discomfort.

He looked up to see the dark-skinned man  fully turned around in his chair and with an arm raised out towards him.  Sam’s brown eyes were  incredibly sharp as they looked over him- no doubt checking for any panic attack or sign of a flashback occuring .    
  
“I’m- I’m good. I  just wanted to grab something from Bucky’s room.” Tony stumbled out as  awkwardly .   
  
He barged into the Alpha’s room, a musky but dusty scent seeping into his nose as he entered. Tony hoped that Bucky wouldn’t mind but he wanted something to scent from….  Something of Bucky’s to give him comfort while holding in the metallic smell and the smokey burning scent that he could never identify .  The mechanic picked up on of the jumpers thrown on the top of a dresser drawer (because Steve didn't believe in wardrobes so didn't have them in his floor) and he shrugged it on .   
  
Sam was in one of his commanding Alpha stances when he came back, and Tony did not have enough willpower in him to disagree . “Here.” He handed him a coco that Steve had mentioned and gestured to the lounge room with his head.   
  
“How are you feeling?” the pilot asked  politely managing it while kicking up his feet onto the coffee table.    
  
“Mentally or  physically ?”Tony snarked  just a little.    
  
The alpha pursed his lips, before bring the mug up to them. “Both.”   
  
A breath. Two. “Tired,  cramping and exhausted.”  the pilot opened his mouth but Tony cut in first. “Am I still seeing someone? Yeah, still meeting with Michael twice a month.”    
  
“Do you want to stay and watch some movies with me?” Sam asked, smiling enough to make Tony warm up a little inside from.   
  


~~~   


 

Bucky walked in almost three hours later with a clean scent of soap and shampoo, sprouting a black eye but grinning at Steve who was in a similar state . Both men wore tracksuit pants and a looser top. Bucky also had his hair up in a small little bun to keep it off his face while it was wet.   
  
Meanwhile, Sam  was sprawled on an armchair with his legs hanging over the arm. Tony was in echoing the same position on the corner of the L-shaped couch.  On the tv in front of them,  _ Speed _ was playing showing the intense bus scene of the passengers  being transferred from one bus to another .   
  
Steve walked over to Sam, gave him an almost unseen kiss on the cheek before he picked up empty mugs and getting himself a coco .    
The other super soldier lent over the back of the couch, looked the mechanic  directly in his eyes  just starring for a moment .    
  
_ Pain?  _ The grey eyes seemed to ask   
  
_ Not much, _ with a small closed mouth smirk that wasn’t doing it job in convincing the other man   
  
A raised brown eyebrow and pinpointing grey eyes,  _ Tony… _   
  
A brush of a hand over Tony’s stomach and then gesture to his lower back said enough for them both. Bucky pulled away and followed Steve.    
  
“Did you guys  just have a non-verbal conversation?” Sam asked,  genuinely shocked.   
  
Tony nodded  softly , trying not to move his head from its position on a couch pillow.    
  
The Alpha actually shook his head. “That’s weird as hell, man.”   
  
It was in no time before both younger men returned, Steve with steaming mugs of cocoa.  Of course, he was considerate enough to have made enough for everyone, and handed them to each of them with a small smile . Bucky meanwhile, had grabbed a heat pack and placed it on Tony's stomach.   
  
“Nice jumper” Bucky said  quietly as he sat on the floor. “I want this one back though. It’s one of my nice ones.”   
  
Tony brushed the hair back from his boyfriends face which drew the attention of his eyes as he turned his face around .    
  
Widening brown eyes to say, _ I’m sorry about before. _   
  
A small nod to say,  _ Me too. _   
  
Grunting pulled them out of their own world. “Still bloody weird.” Sam spoke.   


 

~~~

  
  
“Bucky-bear, you brought me donuts!” Tony scrambled off his chair as Bucky walked into the workshop.   
  
The Alpha’s own smell  was muted behind the scent of the cinnamon wafting from the sweets. If he cared enough, Tony would be able to smell the metal from the workshop and the sweet on his skin.   
  
“JARVIS messaged me like you asked him too, Tiny.”

Dummy wheeled himself over with excited chirps and beeps, his claw holding onto a tennis ball that was lying around .  The robot dropped it at Bucky’s feet  expectantly , even being so obvious to twist down and touch the ball again before looking up at Bucky again .    
  
The younger man barked out a laugh, palming off the sweets to pick up the ball and throw it  gently to the ‘bots charging station where U picked it up  carefully before dropping it . Dummy,  predictably , ran himself straight over to it before returning again.   
  
After he shoved half a donut in his mouth and wandered over to the coffee maker, Tony spoke up. “My heat is almost over.”   
  
“I can smell it on you.” The screaming scents for protection were dulling. “Anything causing you pain?”   
  
The billionaire almost groaned. “Stop mother henning me, gumdrop.”   
  
Bucky actually groaned at that. “Stop.”   
  
“Sweetpea? Darling? Baby? Yeah no, I’m not okay with that one last either.” Tony grimaced.    
  
As soon as Tony got close enough and was taking a bite of the donut, Bucky striked. As Tony’s hand raised towards his mouth, Bucky nudged him with his metal arm. The donut went flying into his mouth, leaving the omega coughing and sputtering   
  
“I was going to thank you, asshole.”   
  
Bucky raised an eyebrow. “Thank me later, without the ‘Bots watching.”

The smell of arousal seeped into the air of the workshop. And Tony was blushing as much as he was able to.   
  
“Don’t do that. You’ll throw my heat out of whack while it ends.” the smaller man whined. Then  suddenly swore as a yellow ball hit him in the shoulder.    
  
He turned around to see his eldest bot still in the middle of the room.“Dummy! What are you doing?” He was  genuinely shocked.   
  
Bucky laughed a little too much at it but got the hint and picked the ball up obliging to please Dummy, and threw it.

" Seriously , though. Thank me later." Bucky smirked

 

  
END

**Author's Note:**

> If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment and ask me.


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